Tuesday, December 6, 2011

MWW Day 12 - Jackie King

Only three days left in the Murder We Write Blog Tour. I’m getting a bit winded with the fast pace and all the interviews I’ve been forced to do under deadline no less. Just hoping there is a break in here toward Christmas although I’m not big on family. Today we are going to change it up a bit. I’m interviewing one “foxy” lady. Jackie King is the author of several novellas, anthologies and books. Jackie thank you for joining me today. W.S. told me I would enjoy this interview because you and foxy are often used in the same sentence. Then she laughed. I just didn’t get the joke. Can you explain it to me?

Jackie: My dear Mitch, there’s no joke, maybe you had spinach on your teeth. I’m a very foxy lady, and among other things, write as a part of a team called “The Foxy Hens.” We wear boas and strut our stuff, and I’ll bet that you’d love us. I even got kissed by a customer once at a book signing. We were giving away chocolate kisses and I said, “Want a kiss from a foxy hen?” and offered him the candy. He said, “Sure,” then leaned down and kissed me. He was good looking and just the right age for me, (yes, he was an older guy) but I forgot to get his telephone number.

Oh, now I see W.S. was pulling a fast one on yours truly. Well I will get even. I don’t want it to be said I wasn’t professional in conducting this interview so on to more meatier questions. Many of your stories are set in the past, the Wild West to be specific. Why is that? What’s wrong with the present?

Jackie: Nothing at all, but the Old West is fun, too. That’s where my historical mysteries are set, in 1889 Guthrie, Oklahoma Territory. I write about gutsy, ambitious, adventurous women who came to this unsettled land at the time of the Land Run. Some are rich, most are poor, but they all seem to get mixed up in murder and mayhem. I’ll be giving away a signed copy of THE FOXY HENS and MURDER MOST FOWL at the end of this tour, and also a signed copy of AN INCONVENIENT CORPSE.

The latest anthology is set in present times and called FOXY HENS MEET A ROMANTIC ADVENTURER. I’ll bet you’d like my story Warm Hearts on Cold Streets, not for the romance part but because my character Anna Rainwater gets tangled up with a serial killer. What a scoop that would make!

In AN INCONVENIENT CORPSE a body is found in a bed and breakfast. In my latest adventure, A CASE OF HOMETOWN BLUES, I stay in a bed and breakfast and I was a bit unnerved because the owners seemed to know every move I made. Are all bed and breakfasts like that? If so, how come they didn’t know about the body?

Jackie: That’s what they want to know! Everyone thinks that poor Grace Cassidy killed the guy. Because of this (plus her rotten husband running off with his secretary and all of their assets) she not only has to find a way to support herself and her teenaged son, she has to find out why there was a dead, naked guy in her bed and who killed him.

Many of your stories in the “Foxy Hen” books have holiday themes. Is that by design or just chance? Are you a big fan of holidays?

Jackie: We have one book with holiday themes: THE FOXY HENS AND ONE BIG ROOSTER. My story is called Thanksgiving with a Mysterious Stranger and features a mail order bride whose husband gets murdered. She didn’t like him that much, but feels obliged to solve his murder and homestead their stake.

Another Foxy Hen book is FOXY HENS GO BUMP IN THE NIGHT. My novella is called The Ghost Who Wouldn’t Skedaddle. These mysteries have a little touch of paranormal, so they might be too scary for you, Mitch.

Thanks for the warning but I don’t scare easily. W. S. must be feeding you some bad information. Anyway, Jackie, thank you so much for joining me today. Where can folks find your books?

I’ve had such fun talking to you Mitch. (By the way, is you single?) And thanks to each of your readers for taking a break from their holiday preparations to join us. Remember readers, to make comments on each of our 15-member mystery writer’s blogsites. We’re giving away over 50 books total, either during the tour or immediately afterwards. I’m giving a signed copy of my cozy mystery THE INCONVENIENT CORPSE and a signed copy of THE FOXY HENS AND MURDER MOST FOWL. Names will be drawn by random from those who take time to leave a comment.

Jacqueline “Jackie” King is a full time writer and native Okie who lives in Tulsa, Oklahoma. At 49 she survived an unexpected divorce and a few years later wrote Flirting at Fifty, her first novella. This humorous account of what is sometimes called “splitting the blanket” in Oklahoma, is part of Chik~Lit for Foxy Hens (2006). The anthology was a success and the Foxy Hens series, brainchild of writer Peggy Fielding, was birthed. Next King wrote The Spinster, the Pig and the Orphan, set in 1889 Guthrie, for Statehood Foxy Hens and Murder Most Fowl (2007). Her third novella, The Ghost Who Wouldn't Skeddadle, will be published late in 2007 in Foxy Hens Go Bump in the Night. This anthology includes Peggy Fielding’s Half-Hollow Hill.

18 comments:

Wendy, Thanks for hosting me today. I just read through the interview and caught such a bad error that it made my teeth hurt. I blush to talk about it. I said to Mitch, "By the way, is you single?"

IS YOU? God help me! And no, I didn't fill my coffee cup with vodka on that particular day. Just an example of doing some last minute editing and then not rereading the outcome. Please believe that I do know better.

Jackie: I should have caught it too. My bad (for another grammar faux pas) We will have to have you back on a Monday when Mitch takes over and have him take a run at Grace. Now that would fun! Thanks for visiting.Wendy

Hi Everyone, Sorry I'm late responding, today. Life interfered. Nothing bad, just lots and lots of messy stuff like dental appointments, arguing with Customer Service at BestBuy, running errands, and (most important) having a manicure. Life may be a mess, but my nails are in good shape. (Puns happen.)Hugs all around,Jackie

Tess, I like to write stories with strong women protagoinsts. Guthrie, O.T., sprang to life overnight in 1889 because of the Land Run. A fascinating mix of people from all over the world gathered for a new chance at their dreams.

My story tells of two women who have very different backgrounds, but each is longing for a better life.

A Case of Hometown Blues

Mitch Malone Mystery - Book 3

A Case of Hometown Blues

Mitch Malone's third adventure takes him to his hometown right before his class reunion.

Mitch vowed he would never return to his hometown after the death of his parents. But when a favor for his editor requires him to teach a seminar for the Flatville newspaper, he must confront the memories he’s tried so hard to bury. A foolish bet with the cub reporters has him chasing down the murderer of the former Homecoming Queen and trying to keep his butt out of jail as the prime suspect. As the facts he thought he knew about his family unravel, can Mitch discover the truth that will allow his parents and school crush to rest in peace or will he be resting with them?

Books By W.S. Gager

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W.S. Gager

About Me

I'm a writer living in West & Central Michigan. My first book, A Case of Infatuation, came out in 2009. A Case of Accidental Intersection, Book 2 in the Mitch Malone Mystery series arrived in Summer of 2010. A Case of Hometown Blues followed in 2011 and A Case of Volatile Deeds will be out in the fall of 2012. I love writing mysteries and helping others learn from my mistakes.